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Barnsley’s first ever dance festival boogies into town this August

Dancing Town builds off legacy of BBC 2 Documentary; famous faces to take part

Get on your dancing shoes Barnsley, because a dance extravaganza like no other will hit the town centre in August – and you’re all invited to be part of the show.

Dancing Town - a legacy event of the BBC Two Documentary ‘Our Dancing Town’ that aired last year - will take place over ten days and get Barnsley moving.

From Friday 10 to Sunday 19 August, a pop up dance floor will appear in Mandela Gardens (behind The Civic on Hanson Street) and feature a dance event suited to all ages and abilities.

The free to attend festival will run daily, with professional performers, local dance groups and some very special guests taking to the stage to perform for the crowds - before inviting you up on stage to have a dance yourself.

Special attractions include an opening night of Northern Soul on Friday 10 August. The following day will see a country theme, with live bands, local line dancing groups, hay bales, a bucking bronco, food and drink all on offer from Barnsley’s best food and drink providers. More programme details will be announced shortly, but expect to see dance genres including street, jive, swing, breakdance, salsa, line dancing, ballroom and lots more.

While the weekends will feature themed events – the weekday programme will be shared between local dance schools that will perform for the crowds on Tuesday, 14 August, with professional dance workshops also taking place.

Meanwhile, qualified fitness instructors will hold classes including Zumba and Yoga, with the full programme and booking details for the free, ticketed classes, to be revealed soon.

Confirmed names scheduled to appear so far include choreographer of Our Dancing Town Steve Elias – who will return to Barnsley for a special guest appearance as part of the event. More guest stars – including a former member of one of the world’s most popular girl groups– will also appear.

Steve said: “I can’t wait to return to Barnsley and get everyone moving. Our Dancing Town was a brilliant documentary that we were all proud of and the reaction to the show from the town was fantastic.

“I’m sure the Barnsley people will come out in force to support the dance festival and take part themselves – there’s going to be loads to see and get involved with. It’s going to be brilliant and I really can’t wait to get involved.”

The full event programme - including details on how you can get involved and the special guest appearances - will all be revealed soon, so keep an eye out for more information on social media and visitbarnsley.com. You can also follow the hashtag #DancingBarnsley on Twitter and Facebook.